Garlic Uses and Facts

Facts

In ancient Rome and Greece, brides carried bouquets of garlic instead of flowers.

There are more than 400 varieties of garlic and they are all member of the Lily family.

China is the world’s biggest garlic producer, they produce about 70% of the world’s garlic.

The key of garlic’s health benefits is the polysulphide allicin.

Deepak Sharma Bajagain from Nepal holds the record of most cloves of garlic eaten in one minute (34).

Each year in July, thousands of people come to Santa Marina del Rey, Spain, to participate in the Garlic Festival.

In ancient Egypt, garlic was considered as a sacred plant, it was used for cooking, embalming and it was given to the slaves each and every day to increase their performance and stress resistance. During the reign of Tutankhamun, you could buy a healthy male slave for 15 pounds of garlic.

Garlic was called “Russian penicillin” during World War II and was given to the soldiers after running out of antibiotics.

Garlic has many beneficial health effects. It combats free radicals and slows down aging. It helps to reduce your bad cholesterol levels and chances of having cardiovascular disease. Some studies have shown its benefits in fighting cancer, diabetes, and various infections.

Uses

Freshly minced, raw garlic has the most health benefits.

Applied on wounds makes them heal faster. During the WWII, it was extensively used for its antibiotic and antiseptic properties.

It is extremely useful in case of cold or the flu. Some studies have shown that eating garlic when having the flu, will reduce the recovery period for more than 60%. Add it to all your favorite dishes, just grab that clove and recover fast!

You should always crush the garlic at room temperature and leave it for 10 minutes before using it, to maximize its health benefits.

If your Rose plants are attacked by aphids, crush some garlic and mix it with water, then spray the leaves and the flowers.

After cutting garlic, you can use a slice of lemon to remove the odor from your fingers.

Use it with caution if having gastrointestinal problems, it can cause bad breath, a burning sensation in you stomach, gas, nausea and diarrhea.

Garlic should be used with caution along with birth control pills because it may decrease the effectiveness of birth control pills.

It inhibits the clotting of blood, so it is recommended to stop taking garlic at least a week before scheduled surgery and to be cautious if taking blood thinning medications.

There are some medications that can interact with it such as Isoniazid, Cyclosporin, Warfarin, Saquinavir and others, so it is recommended to limit your garlic intake if taking some of these medications.

It is also one of the home remedies that are found beneficial in the treatment of sexual impotence. Its ability to relax blood vessels improves circulation, which indirectly helps in treating impotence.

Athlete’s foot can be treated by crushing a couple of cloves and tossing them into a foot bath with warm water and soaking your feet for about 20 minutes.

Garlic oil can be used in treating psoriasis by rubbing the oil directly on the affected area once a day.

Using garlic oil on you hair or just add a clove of garlic in your shampoo, it will make your hair stronger and could end your hair loss problems.

Eating it will help you feel full faster, because of the compounds in garlic that send your brain signals of satiety.

Try adding garlic early in a recipe, because if you cook it longer, the flavor will be sweeter and milder.

The sulfur compounds in garlic protect against organ damage from heavy metal toxicity.

For cold sore, garlic can be as much effective as commercial medical treatments. Cut the clove in half and place it on the cold sore for 5 minutes, several times a day.

Garlic Tea: Peel 3 cloves of fresh garlic and crush them gently with the side of a knife. Add the cloves to 400 ml of water and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and leave it for another 15 minutes. Strain the garlic, add some honey or sugar, a bit of lemon juice and drink when still warm.

Garlic oil: 1 head of fresh garlic; 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil

Peel the cloves and add them to a pot with olive oil. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to low till the garlic begins to be lightly brown. Turn off the heat and let cool. Remove the cloves to slice them and put them into a bowl together with the oil.

→ Botulism is rare, but potentially fatal food poisoning. Garlic and vegetables in oil mixtures may support the growth of Clostridium Botulinum bacteria, so you should use fresh ingredients. The FDA recommends to prepare it fresh and use it as soon as possible. You must refrigerate it and use within a week.

Garlic juice: 1 head of garlic; Smash the cloves with the side of the blade of the knife, be careful not to cut yourself. Place the cloves into a food processor and puree the cloves till you get a creamy liquid. Press it through the strainer with the spatula and discard the pulp that’s left in the strainer. Pour garlic puree from a small bowl through the coffee filter for further straining. Refrigerate your garlic juice in a glass container. If you don’t like the taste of garlic alone, try to mix it with lemon juice, ginger and honey.